Art Market Magazine

Editorial

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While the art market shifts from Paris to the southern shoreline, swept along on a wave of summer bids with the accent unashamedly on luxury and hedonism (p. 20), the Hôtel Drouot is already preparing for the new autumn season. On 22 June, the holding company's Board of Directors elected Alexandre Giquello Chairman of Drouot Patrimoine. He thus succeeds Georges Delettrez. Until now, the auctioneer, a partner of the Binoche & Giquello auction house since 2009, has been Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the supervisory board of Drouot Enchères. So a man with considerable experience of the "trade" and familiarity with executive bodies is now taking over the reins of the Group, embodying a certain sense of renewal through his age: 47. So what projects are awaiting him? They include assisting the roll-out of digital technology via Drouot Digital, and internationalising the brand. A glance at his CV reveals that this inveterate book-lover is mad about fencing and tribal art, and that his innate sense of diplomacy has contributed to his rise. A lesser-known fact is that he has Venetian origins (through his mother) – which leads us seamlessly to one of the summer's key events: the contemporary art Biennale of the Serenissima. This year, it has to cope with unfair competition from Damien Hirst, whose solo show has unleashed a positive tsunami onto the lagoon (p. 62). Have a good holiday!

.Content - Number 71

Every two years, art lovers and professionals flock to the City of the Doges to discover the latest trends in contemporary creation from a twofold standpoint. Firstly, that of the general curator in charge of the international selection presented in the central pavilion and the huge hall of the Arsenale. (For 2017, this task – also an honour – fell to Frenchwoman Christine Macel, head curator of the Centre Pompidou-Musée National d’Art Moderne.) Secondly, that of the national pavilions, spread out in the Giardini or – aided by the Biennale's continuous extension – in compartmentalised areas within the Arsenale and other buildings dotted around the Serenissima. The most impressive aspect is undoubtedly the international selection, because of its huge scope. This section is always severely scrutinised, sometimes considered a failure or disappointing, or on the contrary solid and even political, as in 2015. 2017 reveals the same serious-mindedness as the previous edition, but this time expressed with extreme caution…

The art market is stoking its last fires before the summer break, looking out at the certain art of living that the season seems to cultivate. A painting by the American Tom Wesselmann, proposed by Versailles Enchères auction house, undresses the female form, while on the coastline, between Cannes and Monaco, speciality luxury products (wine, watches, jewellery, cars) are arousing desire…

It's time to reap the benefits of a June month, as rich in auction sales as ever. A particularly good harvest for objets d'art and Asia. One of the outstanding lots of the season, a porcelain baluster vase from the Qianlong period with a blue underglaze decoration (Jean-Marc Delvaux auction house), was rewarded with a bid of €1,064,200.

Will the mega-exhibition organised in Venice under François Pinault's aegis relaunch the British bad boy Damien Hirst's career? With 189 works laid out on the shores of the lagoon, and prepared in secret for ten years, this is decidedly the artist's most extravagant project yet.

"Collecting should be fun" goes the mantra of the star make-up artist and collector Terry de Gunzburg, who is opening a new store in Paris dedicated to lifestyle. With her husband Jean de Gunzburg, she has built up one of the finest collections of our time, where Picasso, Modigliani, and Rothko rub shoulders with Dunand and Royère.

Colnaghi is the oldest art gallery in the world: what's the secret of this longevity? Sheer daring, both in the past and nowadays, with its duo of young Spanish dealers, Nicolás Cortés and Jorge Coll, now heading the gallery. Jorge Coll tells us about the new-look profession of art dealer and his passion: Old Masters.

The creator of scarcely more than fifteen projects in ten years – the man likes to take his time –, Ismaïl Bahri is the subject of a solo show this summer at the Jeu de Paume in Paris, consisting solely of videos: little gems of extraordinary poetry expressed as a walk towards "the outside, the wind and the light".